Downtown Glencoe Dining: Mensch’s Deli is in; Meg’s Cafe and Merlo’s are out

Changes continue on the Glencoe dining scene; the latest being the opening of Mensch’s Deli, a full-service “love letter to the Jewish deli,” as it is described on the restaurant’s website.

Mensch’s is a concept from New Trier High School alumni Jack DeMar, Eric Kogan and Kiki Eliopoulos, who opened the restaurant’s first location in Evanston in 2024.

The Glencoe version — open 9 a.m.-3 p.m. weekdays, 8-3 p.m. Saturday-Sunday — features the same menu that includes breakfast favorites and Jewish-deli lunch staples, like corned beef, pastrami, potato latke and matzo ball.

A key difference in the locations is Mensch’s Glencoe boasts a large outdoor patio that DeMar said has been a success thus far.

“Our biggest hit so far, beside the food, has been the patio,” he said. “A lot of people don’t realize we have this giant, secluded patio back there.”

Mensch’s pays tribute to former Glencoe deli, like Harry’s, with photos on the wall and made-to-order favorites.

“It’s just the kind of place and meal that brings a lot of people back. It triggers old memories and some nostalgia,” DeMar said.

Mensch’s sister restaurant Picnic, which shares the same building as Mensch’s, opened in May and focuses on healthful grab-and-go meals with counter ordering; though, it also features a spacious dining room.

What’s out

The opening of Mensch’s Deli followed the departure of longtime downtown Glencoe eatery Meg’s Cafe on May 31.

Meg’s Cafe and Apple A Day Catering had long shared the space at 317 Park Ave. under the leadership of Barbara Lepman, of Northbrook, who has served Glencoe diners for 40 years.

Lepman posted on social media that while Apple A Day Catering will continue on, the businesses have vacated 317 Park.

“It’s been a great run Glencoe! We have so loved being part of this amazing community,” she wrote. “You have seen us through some great highs, some lows, some huge milestones, you showed up for us in a pandemic, and you have been a smile on our faces everyday!

“You have been part of our family and we have truly loved being part of yours. We can never express how incredibly grateful we are for the years we shared together, it’s been very much a labor of love!”

Merlo’s Italian restaurant, 667 Vernon Ave., also shuttered this spring. The restaurant opened in February 2024 and closed in April of this year.

The space has seen a variety of restaurants since 2013, when Dewey’s took over for Vernon’s. From there, Cibo Trattoria, District and Valor all gave it a shot before folding.

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